


Bittersweet Symphony

by Lollikins



Series: What Dreams May Come [6]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Bottom Kang Yeosang, Boys In Love, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Top Park Seonghwa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 16:46:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29654286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lollikins/pseuds/Lollikins
Summary: To try and make everyone happy, will Yeosang make a dire decision?
Relationships: Kang Yeosang/Park Seonghwa
Series: What Dreams May Come [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2169861
Comments: 2
Kudos: 24





	Bittersweet Symphony

Sunlight came screaming through the blinds in Yeosang’s room. He opened one eye and pulled his pillow over his face. How could sunlight be so loud? His head was thumping. He all of the sudden remembered work and he sat up suddenly, which was followed by a mournful groan. Why had he done that? That was such a bad idea. He picked up his phone and looked at the time, shit he was late. There were also several messages from Seonghwa as well as one from Oh Eunju. 

“Oh look who is awake, good morning princess.” Wooyoung came in carrying a bowl of what looked like some form of hangover soup. 

“Here eat this and take your medicine.” He gestured to Yeosang’s bedside table. 

Yeosang scooped up the Tylenol as well as downing the small bottle there before making a face, “Ugh, bitter.” 

“Scoot over.” 

Yeosang scooted over and Wooyoung put the tray over his lap. There were some side dishes as well as the soup and rice. “You take such good care of me.” 

“This isn’t me. This is all thanks to your boyfriend. He came over last night after we got home and helped me get you into bed then went and got you some medicine and the soup. The side dishes are from me though, so you can thank me profusely for making sure your breakfast isn’t boring. He also said you didn’t have to rush into work, that you should sleep as much as you need. And before you ask, I like him. I like him a lot. It’s obvious he cares about you.” 

He couldn’t remember much about the night before, the more he tried to think, the more his head hurt. He closed his eyes and took a long slow breath before letting it out and starting to eat his soup. 

“You’re not going to ask?” 

“I’m afraid of what you’ll say I did.” 

“All things considered, it wasn’t really that bad… apart from where you tried to be sexy. That didn’t work and it was funny as hell.” 

“I what?” Yeosang paled. He was honestly used to embarrassing himself in front of Wooyoung. They had been drunk together dozens of times before. This meant they had both said and done tons of ridiculous things together. But there were things he was sure he would say to Seonghwa that he wouldn’t say in Wooyoung’s presence and vice versa. 

“You tried to be sexy at Park Seonghwa. I laughed.” 

“What did he do?” 

“He seemed more worried about you than anything else. I think he’s a really good guy.” Wooyoung said. 

“I’m surprised to hear you say that. You’ve never really approved of any of the people I’ve brought home for you to meet.” 

“Maybe it’s because you didn’t bring this one home, he came on his own. I think you need to talk to him today. You said some things last night that probably need some explanation.” 

“What did I say?” 

“You really don’t remember anything?” asked Wooyoung. 

“My head hurts when I try to remember.” 

Woo nodded, “You said that you didn’t want to ruin him and that he should leave you before that happened.” 

Yeosang winced and sighed heavily, “Shit.” 

Wooyoung stood up and laid a hand on Yeosang’s shoulder, “For what it’s worth, I think you picked the right time to stand up to your parents. I think he’s a good one.” 

Despite the pounding in his head, Yeosang couldn’t help smiling. He turned back to his soup and Wooyoung left. When he finished eating, he checked his messages, the first ones were from Seonghwa wondering where he was. Then the last one was him telling him to rest up at home today and come in when he felt better tomorrow. Just as he was reading, the phone buzzed with another message from Seonghwa, “I hope you’re feeling better. Call me or come by if you want to talk.” 

Yeosang smiled and then opened the last message from Oh Eunju. “Don’t you ever walk out on me like that again. I’ll see you at the fitting appointment. Don’t forget.” 

She couldn’t even pretend to be pleasant but then again, after the show she had put on yesterday, he wouldn’t have believed it anyway. No, he was not going to give that harpy what she wanted but he needed to be careful. He was going to need support from somewhere and he knew it wouldn’t be from his parents. That meant he was going to need his grandparents' help. They were more likely to be understanding than his parents were. But first, he needed to talk to Seonghwa.

He couldn’t let him lose everything that he had worked so hard for, not for him. He was one of the youngest directors in the company’s history. That didn’t come easy. How easily could Oh Eunju wipe that all away? He would be unhappy but what mattered more was Seonghwa’s happiness. He knew that there would never be anyone at all like him in his life. Maybe if he was lucky, Seonghwa might forgive him after the wedding. Wooyoung was going to kill him. In fact, he would probably dig him up and resurrect him, just so he could kill him again. Was he really going to do this? 

He just wanted Seonghwa to be happy. 

He wasn’t entirely sure what he was even going to say. He did know he wanted to put it off as long as possible. For a little while, he was the happiest he had ever been in his life. He would never feel like he felt for Seonghwa ever again. Yeosang picked up his phone and shot a text to Seonghwa, asking if he could meet him after work. 

“Are you feeling better?” Seonghwa asked. 

Of course the first thing he did was ask if he felt better, he was such a caring person. He couldn’t tell him the truth that he felt worse than he had in recent memory. He was going to do something he would probably hate himself for later. “I’m not hungover anymore because of you, thanks.” 

“No problem. You’re adorable when you’re drunk.”

“Only you would think that.” He fought the tears that were welling up in his eyes. He was just so sweet, he didn’t deserve any of this. 

“It’s true.” Seonghwa insisted before continuing, “I’ll be a bit late getting home tonight, I’ve got a meeting with some of the executives but if you want to come over late, I’d be happy to see you. I know it’s work but I missed you today. I feel like someone cut a Kang Yeosang shaped hole out of my life when you’re not here.” 

Seonghwa wasn’t doing it on purpose but he was killing him, “No, it’s alright. You need your rest. I’ll just see you at work tomorrow.” 

“Alright, have a good day and goodnight. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Yeosang spent his day wallowing in misery, feeling sorry for himself. It wasn’t until about 10pm that he realized that Seonghwa might be seeing Oh Eunju at his meeting. Would she say anything to him? Surely she wouldn’t say anything in front of everyone. No, it would probably be to her benefit to keep the secret. 

It was late, Seonghwa looked at his watch. Normally, he would have happily joined in the drinking but tonight he was in no mood. He wanted his head clear when he went to bed, so he could meet Yeosang in his dreams. There was nothing more on his mind than the man he loved the entire evening. It was about midnight when he finally put the CEO into the back of his car with a hired driver to take him home. Was Yeosang sleeping already? A little smile teased his lips as he started back to where he had parked.

“Park Seonghwa?” Seonghwa stopped and turned. A beautiful woman called out to him, what was her name again? Oh Eunju? She was one of the children of the chairman, or something. He almost never saw her at the office or at these executive meetings for that matter. He only knew her name because she had been introduced at the beginning of the evening.

“I was wondering if I might have a word with you.” 

He gave a quick glance at his watch again, “Of course, how can I help you?” 

“I think my fiancée works for you.”

There was a momentary look of confusion on his face and then it dawned on him that she meant Yeosang, he had seen her leaving with Yeosang. He kept his expression neutral. So this was the woman Kang Yeosang had been arranged to marry. He couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for her, it seemed Yeosang had yet to speak to her. “Who would that be? There are quite a few people who work under me.”

“That would be Kang Yeosang.”

“Ah, yes Secretary Kang.” He was getting a sinking feeling in his stomach and he wasn’t sure why. 

“I need to borrow him tomorrow to go to the fitting for his tuxedo for the wedding. When I spoke to him at lunch, he was very excited about it. You know how grooms can be. By the way, CEO Lee will be retiring this winter, I understand you are an ambitious man. I could help you get that position and of course, my husband would take over your position.” 

Seonghwa studied Oh Eunju quietly for a long moment, “Walk with me to my car won’t you? I’ll drive you to yours.” He looked around at the other executives still lingering around. Those that were sober enough were all ears to their conversation. He had the distinct feeling there was something more at play here. He was ambitious and while he would have desperately longed for that CEO position, there were at least 3 other directors who had been at the company longer than he had with much firmer backing. Why in the world would she offer it to him and in such a sideways manner? 

Oh Eunju looked around at the other people lingering and nodded, “Alright, I’m parked in the parking garage a couple of blocks away.” 

Seonghwa nodded, “I’m parked this way.” 

They walked in silence to his car, he unlocked the doors with a push of a button and climbed in. “Now that we’re alone, what is this about Miss.Oh?”

“I’ll speak frankly, I know you’re fucking my future husband. I don’t like it but I’ll tolerate it. There are things wives need to live with and as long as you don’t disturb my plans I won’t disturb yours. You can gain that CEO position, if I marry Kang Yeosang, I will control 51% of the voting stock. If I want you as CEO, you will be CEO and  _ my _ Yeosang will be Director. Just think about what’s good for him and good for you. He might balk and you need to make sure he does what’s in his best interest.” 

Seonghwa listened as he drove, he was absolutely gobsmacked. How in the hell did she know about the two of them. They were so new that Yeosang’s roommate only just found out about them and from what he had gathered, Yeosang and Oh Eunju weren’t that close. He drove as she directed him, he took the time to put his thoughts in order. 

“What do you say, CEO Park?” 

He carefully chose his words, “You say that you know that Secretary Kang and I are an item. I am curious how you could even begin to claim such a thing. That’s patently ridiculous. He spent the weekend at my place working.” 

Then he remembered the man in the car parked outside of Yeosang’s place. But still, unless she had been in his apartment, how would she know what they talked about… could she have bugged Yeosang’s place as well? If she was having him followed then he probably shouldn’t put it past her. 

“Let’s just say I have my sources. You can deny it all you like, I know the truth.” 

“You say you don’t mind that Yeosang is having a relationship but what if I mind that Yeosang is having a relationship with you?” 

Oh Eunju laughed, “I know all about you Park Seonghwa and all of the work you’ve put in to get where you are. I know how much your work means to you. If word got out that you’re fucking Kang Yeosang, what do you think that would do to your career? What do you think it would do to Yeosang’s career and his life? Do you think his family would welcome you with open arms? They would probably disown him and he would end up jobless, just like you. Is it really worth it for a piece of ass? This is my car, you can stop here.” 

Seonghwa stopped behind Oh Eunju’s car. 

“You’re right, I’ve worked very hard to get where I am. I’ve busted my ass and made a lot of sacrifices. However, it’s just a job. Yeosang is a person and an important person to me. There’s one thing in my life I can’t replace and that’s him. Marrying you while his heart is elsewhere would make him miserable and I would never ask him to make himself unhappy on my account. So, as of tomorrow, I’ll be handing in my letter of resignation. That should take care of one of the problems. I can’t do anything about his family but he already knows that they will not be receptive to his relationship. As for his being jobless, we’ll work it out. There are things he can do that don’t involve him giving his life over to you.” Seonghwa was rather proud of himself for exactly how smoothly and calmly he delivered his statement. 

“Now, if you’ll excuse me- I have a date with someone very important.” 

Oh Eunju stared at Seonghwa in shock. How could someone just piss away something they had fought for, something they wanted so badly? If that was how he wanted to play it, then that was how she would play it. If he really did hand in his resignation tomorrow, there would be little point in her trying to convene the shareholders to have him dismissed. If he didn’t hand it in, she would make sure he was kicked out onto the street. 

Despite what he said, she knew Yeosang. He always did what his parents told him to do. He always did what she told him to do. He was weak willed, he hadn’t even had the guts to say anything to her when they had lunch and he tried to call off the wedding. She and his parents could make sure that he went through with the wedding, no matter what Park Seonghwa said. She got out of the car, “Think what you will Park Seonghwa, I will be marrying Kang Yeosang in the fall.” 

“I will, I have faith in Kang Yeosang.” He said as she closed the door. He knew she heard him, she gave him a disgusted look. 

It was just starting to rain as Seonghwa pulled out onto the street. He should have turned right to head home but instead, he turned left to go to Yeosang’s. Whether he was awake or not, he needed to see him. 

By the time he made it to Yeosang’s the light rain had become a deluge. In the short run to the door, he was soaked. When no one answered immediately, he scooped up a handful of pebbles from the flower bed and backed up to line himself up with Yeosang’s window. It took a few tosses before the light came on. The blinds opened and Yeosang peered out after a moment of trying to ascertain who it was, he disappeared and the door opened. “Seonghwa?” 

Without a word, Seonghwa marched toward him, pushed him inside and pulled him into his arms, kissing him hungrily. “We need to talk, grab an umbrella.” 

Yeosang immediately melted against him. “Umbrella? We can’t talk here?” 

“I think you might be bugged.” 

For a moment Yeosang looked incredulous but nodded and walked off. When he returned, he was dressed and had an umbrella. Once they were outside, Seonghwa looked around and saw the car that had been there before but it would be hard to covertly spy on them when they were aware of his presence. The rain would also mask their voices. They walked off into the night, when he looked at the man he was getting out of his car. He seemed to realize he had been spotted and got back in.

They walked on in silence for a moment before Seonghwa spoke, “So you saw your fiancée for lunch. I think I know how that went because she went out of her way to ‘run into me’ at our executive dinner. She offered me the CEO position if I didn’t try to stop the wedding.” 

Yeosang dropped his head, he knew what that meant. It meant that Seonghwa wasn’t going to interfere with the wedding. He was just happy that Seonghwa was the one saying it and not him. 

“I told her that I was resigning tomorrow because I wasn’t going to sell out the man I love for a job.” 

Yeosang’s head snapped up and he looked at Seonghwa, “What?” 

“I love you Kang Yeosang and if you love me, then there’s nothing more important than that. There is nothing more important to me than how we feel about each other. It’s just a job and I’ve already got another one lined up. So, tell me - do you love me?” 

Yeosang didn’t know what to say, he had it in his head that Seonghwa would hate him for imperiling his position or at least that the possibility of letting him marry and taking over a new position would be ideal. “I love you but why? I mean wouldn’t it be better to let me marry and get the new position while we were still together in secret?” 

“No, it wouldn’t be better. No matter what position they offered me or how much money, I couldn’t be happy without you. I don’t just want you in my bed, I want you in my life. I want to build a life with you and all apologies to Wooyoung, that means living with you. I can’t marry you but if our country ever catches up to the west, then I promise you a ring on your finger. Do you understand now? I’d rather be myself with you than someone else without you.”

“But you’ve worked so hard…” 

“And I’ll keep working hard but with people who accept me for who I am and that’s a man who is in love with you. Are you saying you want to marry Oh Eunju?” 

Yeosang shook his head, “I don’t want to marry her at all. I just sort of went along with it because I didn’t have anything else to do.”

“Oh Yeosang.” Seonghwa said sympathetically.

“I know, it’s sad. I think I’ll talk to my parents first, after they disown me then there’s not really anything else that she can threaten me with.” 

“Are you sure they’ll disown you?” 

“I can’t be positive but I think they will. There’s a chance my grandparents won’t and if my grandparents don’t then they might be able to pressure my parents not to. It’s … It’s going to be ugly.” Yeosang sighed and ran a hand over his face. 

“Do you want me to come with you?” 

“Do I want you to? Yes. Do I think it will help? No. I know with my mother it’ll probably hurt.” Yeosang gave a short laugh, “Wooyoung has been telling me to cut the apron strings for years now. I guess I’m going to do it in the most dramatic way possible. At least I know my sister will still talk to me.” 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Seonghwa stopped and looked into Yeosang’s eyes.

“To be with you, to have a chance at real happiness? Yes.” He always knew being with a man would be hard but he didn’t realize exactly how stressful it would be but in the long run it would be worth it, even if just for the time they spent together at home. 

Seonghwa smiled and continued walking, they walked in silence for a little while. “Why do you think I’m bugged?” 

“She knew all about us and since you couldn’t see what we were doing at my apartment, she had to have heard it being discussed. You told Wooyoung about us, so that’s my only guess. She had someone following you, I saw him outside your house. He’s probably still there.” 

“You’ve got to be kidding me… how paranoid is she?” Yeosang turned and headed back to his house. “Which car is it?” 

Seonghwa pointed and Yeosang walked straight up to the car and knocked on the window. Reluctantly the man rolled it down, “You can tell the woman who hired you that I know all about it now. So all of the information you get will be minimal. Now goodnight. To keep it simple for you, I’m going home and going to bed then I’ll be getting up and going to work.” 

With that he turned his back and walked back to his house with Seonghwa in tow. “I can’t believe she did that. I guess I need to check the house to see if there are, or where the listening device is. It could be anywhere, she’s been here a few times.” 

“Are you alright?” Seonghwa looked around as the private detective’s vehicle started and pulled out of the spot and disappeared into the night. 

“Not really, I want to ask you to come in but Wooyoung will be home soon and worse, she will hear every word we say.” He sighed heavily.

Seonghwa wrapped his arms around Yeosang and just held him, “Nothing to hear while we’re doing this.” 

Yeosang just held onto Seonghwa as the rain poured down around them. “Thank you for stopping me from making the worst mistake of my life.”    
  
“I just want you to be happy Yeosang and I know you wouldn’t be happy living like she and your parents would want you to, I want the chance to make you happy. I want the chance to make us both happy.” 

Yeosang stole a peek around and kissed Seonghwa quickly before disengaging himself, “It’s late and we both have to get up in the morning. We should probably go to bed and … dream.” 

“That’s what I was hoping for tonight but I’m still happy I got to see you.” 

“I’m glad you came by, I was planning something stupid.” 

“No, not stupid, I know your heart. You just want everyone to be happy. That’s a good thing.” Seonghwa kissed his nose, “What were you planning?” 

“I was planning on doing what Oh Eunju wanted…” In retrospect, he was ashamed of it. He was planning on letting Oh Eunju have her way without talking to Seonghwa about it first. 

“Now you’re doing what you want. I admire you, I think you’re stronger than I am.” His family was pretty liberal. He knew there would be some people who didn’t like it but no one would disown him. He’d just be the weird one everyone knew was a little special. He could live with that. Then again, he was close with his family. Losing them would devastate him utterly. He didn’t know if he wouldn’t have made the same choice Yeosang made if he was faced with losing everything.

Yeosang smiled, “I’ve been saving it up.” 

“Go to bed so I can meet you in my dreams.” 

“If I didn’t already know, that would be really cringy.” Yeosang teased.

“I know and I’d be embarrassed saying it.” Seonghwa lifted Yeosang’s hand to his lips and kissed it. “Goodnight baby.” 

“Goodnight.” He squeezed Seonghwa’s fingers and slipped back into his house, closing the door quietly behind him. 


End file.
